


Shadows and Wakes

by moodiful819



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Gen, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Mild Gore, Past Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-23
Updated: 2012-06-23
Packaged: 2018-02-06 07:16:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1849210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moodiful819/pseuds/moodiful819
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He had been the first to leave. Now he was the only one left. Post-LoK finale. Spoilers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shadows and Wakes

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even know what I'm doing anymore. I should be working on Secrets, but that finale kind of ruined it and now I have all sorts of sibling feels and I just spat this out because of all the Noatok-Tarrlok gifs and I just…I just can't. Especially with Itachi and Sasuke in the latest chapter.
> 
> I have too many sibling-feels.

Shock was the first thing that registered in her mind.

It was impossible—a dream—a trick of the light—a heat mirage, she told herself and perhaps shock was a poor choice of words. Shock was just a more severe form of surprise and that was just too light of a word, too light of a description to be used. Rather, it was cute that she even decided to use that word.

Her eyes, blue and vibrant as the sea they stood near, were wide with disbelief. Her voice stuck in her throat.

"This is impossible. We combed every inch of the bay after the explosion. There was nothing left," she explained as she drank in the tattered remains of a familiar uniform, the mottled disfigured skin on his left cheek and parts of his scalp, the sprouts of hair pushing to grow out of what wasn't horribly burned by fire and fuel and just—how did he survive?  _How was he still alive?_

Across from her at the end of the pier, a breeze blew past. On his right side, the remnants of his full head of hair skated his shoulder as he ignored the pulsing ache of the not-yet-fully-healed wounds and raw nerves on his left, drinking in with a certain detached satisfaction the mortification with which the young Avatar looked upon him. If she thought the burn on his face was bad, she should take a look at his back; and the irony was not lost on him that he had a burn so close to where he had painted one on.

Legs quaking, her voice was a bare whisper. "You're supposed to be dead," she told him, and the words unleashed something in him, sent a cascade of memories raining down on his head as he relived his final moments.

The boat.

His brother.

The donning of a glove and the slow, methodical twist of a fuel tank being uncapped.

"It will be just like the good old days," Tarrlok had affirmed and he could hear in his younger brother's voice that it was over. It was all over and while disappointed, he couldn't entirely say it was unexpected.

It was the end of an era. His reign as Amon was over, but it was alright because he had his little brother and this was probably the inevitable end and really, the timing was perfect because he was so tired of it all and Tarrlok was here and at the very least, he wouldn't be alone. They were reunited and they would stay together like they should have all those years ago—like they would forever now.

And then there was the crackle of electricity poured over the sound of the motor, whited out in his ears by a deafening roar.

" _It will be just like the good old days."_

Burned and scarred, a wry smile played on his lips as he stood across from her on the pier.

"You aren't the only one disappointed."


End file.
